(continued from previous page) ...finishes off your opponent regardless of how much life bar remained with just one blow. Cassandra’s cinematic has her putting her butt over her downed opponent’s face as hearts explode around the screen. This can change the fate of a match at any time, but they must be perfectly timed and they’re not easy to pull off.

Although neither Darth Vader nor Yoda was shown in this build, Wayne Shiu, product marketing manager at Namco Bandai told me that both of these Jedis have been balanced inside the game world. They each have unique Star Wars backgrounds from the films and feature moves from the movie like Vader picking up an opponent by the neck and tossing him over the side like in Return of the Jedi. Each fighter will also have his own critical finisher that revolves around the Star Wars mythology.

In addition to the weapons-based fighting, Namco Bandai promises a new story set-up based around the swords of power with each character having a unique reason to acquire the all-powerful swords. Overall, I found the gameplay to be very accessible. It was as fun to jump into Hilde and button-mash through several victories as it was to employ timed combos. And for those worried about the critical finishing moves, they’re only available when an opponent spends the entire match blocking rather than attacking. It serves as a nice balance for those who like to fight fairly.